1. Technical Field of the Invention
This invention relates to camouflage and, more particularly, to a camouflage utilizing countershading, countercoloring and disruptive coloration camouflage techniques.
2. Description of Related Art
Currently, the most popular form of camouflage technique utilized is situational camouflage. Situational camouflage attempts to conceal an object or person with patterns resembling the surrounding vegetation in which the object or person is located. The basic theory is the better the resemblance to the local vegetation, the better the concealment of the object or person. With situational camouflage, there are no universal camouflage patterns which may be used in general for most environments. Rather, the more appropriate camouflage patterns depend on the local environment in which concealment by an individual or object is sought. There are patterns for broadleaf forest in the early and late seasons of the year, patterns for willows, wetlands, marshes, grasslands, evergreens, pear flats, and various other environments. Virtually all situational camouflages are optimized for concealment within specific environments. In addition, many of these camouflage patterns incorporate three-dimensional effects and photorealistic detail to provide greater emulation of the surrounding vegetation.
However, in addition to the fact that tailoring camouflage for every environment is expensive, the basic use of situational camouflage is flawed. It can be seen in nature that situational camouflage is not utilized by large predators. Large predators hunt by stealth, but still have not evolved camouflage patterns that look like the surrounding vegetation in which they hunt. In addition, all large predators that hunt by stealth have evolved camouflage patterns that, though they differ in the finest details, are exactly alike in principle. The forms of camouflage used by large predators are far superior to the situational camouflage used in existing camouflage. Additionally, the camouflage used by large predators is universal, or nearly universal, thus offering the best possible concealment in almost all environments. Presently, no camouflage exploits the crucial elements found in nature by large predators.
The leopard species provides an excellent example which contradicts the basic tenets of situational camouflage. Leopards live in many different habits from the rainforests, frigid mountains, and deserts. The leopard is found as far north as 50 degrees latitude to the southern tip of Africa. In order to survive, a leopard must kill by using stealth to approach its prey. When in close enough proximity to the prey, the leopard can launch an attack. Thus, the leopard's camouflage is particularly demanding and definitely a requisite for survival. It should be noted, that wherever the leopard is found around the world, the spots of the leopard never change. Thus, the leopard does not change to blend in with its environment as would be dictated by situational camouflage. Rather, the leopard has evolved to be invisible rather than look like the surrounding vegetation.
All of the great cats of the world, such as leopards, have developed camouflage which follows three basic principles. The first principle is that these large predators all are countershaded. Countershading conceals the shape of a countershaded form. Ordinarily, the way light strikes a form reveals its shape, contours, and orientation. Countershading counteracts the ordinary way that light strikes a form from above, thereby concealing the orientation, shape, contour and form of a countershaded form. Countershaded forms are invariably darker on top where the light is brighter, and lighter on the usually shadow-shrouded bottom. This subtle and sometimes dramatic shading conceals a predator by making it more uniformly lit, thereby making it seem less three-dimensional and more two-dimensional. A countershaded form appears flat, and is easily hidden, even in the thinnest of cover.
The second principle used by these large predators is countercoloring. Countercoloring counteracts the color composition of the light typically encountered by the predator and determines the color in which an animal is countershaded. Where countershading counteracts the intensity of light reflected on a countershaded form, countercoloring counteracts the color composition of the light reflected about the environment, thereby reducing the contrast of a countercolored form to its environment.
Three factors must be taken into account for countercoloring. First, in the open/under “normal” daylight, much of the light is blue light reflected around the blue sky. Second, yellow is the color that counteracts blue and reduces the contrast between a form countercolored in yellow under the sky in daylight. Third, the light filtering through vegetation is depleted in red light in proportion to the amount of vegetation because plants preferentially absorb red light for photosynthesis. Taken together, these three facts explain why animals that depend on stealth are countershaded in their particular colors. Yellow is the color needed to reduce the contrast of an object in normal, unfiltered daylight. Thus, the lion, which lives preferentially in the open and is exposed to the blue sky, is yellow in color. The heavier the vegetation in which an animal evolves and lives, the more depleted the prevailing light is in red and, thus, the redder (relative to a basic lion-like yellow which is the starting point needed to counteract strongly blue unfiltered daylight) an animal must be to compensate for the absorption of red light by the vegetation. This is why animals of the jungle such as tigers and jaguars are reddish brown or even orange. In addition, this explains why the leopard's color tends to be more yellow in more open habitats and tends to darken to rusty reddish brown and orange in jungle habitats. Also, this explains why there are no large predators that are green, even though almost all of them live in environments that are predominantly green for much of the year.
The third principle utilized by large predators is the use of disruptive coloration. Disruptive coloration further conceals the predator's shape by breaking it up with a contrasting pattern or shading. This effect may be quite subtle, such as the dark color on a lion's ear, or bold like a leopard's spots or a tiger's stripes. In each case, the disruptive patterns resemble the shadows cast by the vegetation through which the predator is likely to move while hunting.
Collectively, countershading, countercoloring, and disruptive coloration (CCD) are indispensable for camouflage success in big cats. CCD camouflage is currently not being used by man.
Although there are no known prior art teachings of a solution to the aforementioned deficiency and shortcoming such as that disclosed herein, prior art references that discuss subject matter that bears some relation to matters discussed herein are U.S. Pat. No. 4,656,065 to Yacovella (Yacovella), U.S. Pat. No. 5,920,903 to Koehntop et al. (Koehntop), U.S. Pat. No. 5,924,131 to Wilkinson (Wilkinson), and U.S. Pat. No. 6,061,828 to Josephs (Josephs).
Yacovella discloses a camouflage cloth that mimics the rough bark of a tree. The camouflage combines the principles of mimicry, disruptive patterning, and shading. The disruptive patterning includes continuous bands of color that break up the form of the garment or the hunter wearing it. Shading is used to give the pattern a 3-dimensional effect. However, Yacovella does not teach or suggest the use of countershading to produce a 2-dimensional effect. In addition, Yacovella does not disclose the use of countercoloring.
Koehntop discloses a camouflaged apparel that resembles the coloration of a selected species of waterfowl. However, although Koehntop discloses the mimicry of an animal, Koehntop does not teach or suggest the use of CCD for camouflage.
Wilkinson discloses a process for designing camouflage clothing that uses software-enhanced photographic images of natural scenes to design and print a camouflage garment. However, Wilkinson does not teach or suggest the use of CCD for use in their camouflage garment.
Josephs discloses a camouflage garment and other items having a repeating camouflage pattern thereon. Certain embodiments of the invention utilize the principles of disruptive patterning and shading so that camouflaged items may blend in with surrounding features. However, Josephs does not employ CCD collectively within its camouflaged garments.
Thus, it would be a distinct advantage to employ the principles of CCD camouflage in concealing people and objects. It is an object of the present invention to provide methods in implementing and manufacturing CCD camouflage.